American Pop artist Andy Warhol (1928 - 1987) sits in front of several paintings in his 'Endangered Species' at his studio, the Factory, in Union Square, New York, New York, April 12, 1983. (Photo by Brownie Harris/Corbis via Getty Images)
A Florida man working as an art dealer has been sentenced to nearly four years in prison for a scheme to sell fake Andy Warhol artworks.
What we know:
Leslie Howard Roberts, 63, took a plea in federal court in Miami for conspiracy to commit wire fraud and was sentenced to three years and 10 months. He was also ordered to pay back nearly $2.6 million of what he earned from the scam.
Dig deeper:
According to court records, Roberts owned the Miami Fine Art Gallery in Coconut Grove. Prosecutors say he fraudulently represented art as originals created by renowned artist and filmmaker Andy Warhol by saying he acquired the art directly from the Andy Warhol Foundation for the Visual Arts, even giving fake invoices to the victims.
Prosecutors say he transferred at least $240,000 in wire fraud proceeds from his company’s bank account to a personal bank account, according to the indictment.
Investigators say a co-conspirator, Carlos Miguel Rodriguez Melendez, who was also charged in connection to the fraud, posed as an employee of a New York-based auction company, participated by selling the forged art using the fake invoices and authentications.
What they're saying:
"He exploited the trust that collectors place in art dealers and the authenticity of the works they purchase," U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Florida Jason Reding Quiñones said in a statement.
In 2023, another South Florida art dealer was sentenced to two years and three months in federal prison, also for selling fake Andy Warhol artwork.
The Source: This story was written with information provided by The Associated Press. This story was reported from Orlando.